Seventh Inning Stretch
by xxBellaNottexx
Summary: After moving to the valley with her brother, Sandy Smalls learns about boys and baseball in this a/u version of the Sandlot. Romance between OC/Benny. for language, no smut. They are f***in 12-14, they shouldn't be having sex.
1. Chapter 1 (04-26 13:04:31)

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to "The Sandlot", including, but not limited to, the characters, the plot or the setting. The only thing I do own are the original characters (Sandra, Cora and miscellaneous characters not involved with the original movie).

As a light blue 1959 Chevy Bel-Air sat in the driveway of their new home, Scotty and Sandra Smalls began to unload an orange U-Haul trailer. The soft sound of music made its way outside as Sandra pulled open the white screen door of 1556 Cedar Lane. Stepping into the house, Sandra walked past the kitchen with a medium sized box in her arms. It was, appropriately, labeled "Sandy's room." Her mother was busy unpacking and putting away dishes and silverware. The woman, who she looked so similar to, swayed back and forth, gently, as she sang "At Last", by Etta James. Sandra had gotten her love of older music from her mother, as well as her gift for singing. As much as her mother denied it, she had a beautiful voice. Thankfully, Sandra had inherited it, as well as, her beautiful blue eyes and brunette hair. Sandra often wore her pulled back or slightly off to the side in a low ponytail with a colored ribbon holding it in place. It was easier than having to constantly make it into a bob or a bouffant.

Sandy approached her room, nudging the door open with her foot. She walked over to the bare bed and placed the box down and opened it up. Her dainty hands rummaged through the box, pulling various odds and ends and setting them on a small suspended shelf. As she was preoccupied with setting up her baubles, Bill, her step-father made his way in with her vanity. Scotty was helping him, even if it looked like he was struggling. The piece of furniture was, by no means, light. The large vanity has one big mirror with two side mirrors attached. It looked like a white, ornate piece of furniture that came out of the 1920s or 30s. And it, kind of, did. It had belonged to Sandy and Scotty grandmother and when she passed, she willed it to her only granddaughter. Sandy was obsessed with it, as a child. Anytime her parents would visit, Sandy would run off and play with her grandmother's makeup, until she came out of the bedroom, looking like a tiny clown.

"Where d'ya want this, Sandy?" Bill said, looking around the barren room, with its cream colored walls.

"Umm," Sandra turned around, pursing her lips. She pointed to a corner of the room , opposite from the bed and shrugged. "There, I suppose. Thanks, Bill, Scotty."

Sandra had found it easier to speak with her step-father than her brother had. Scotty had already left the room and went back outside, as a matter of fact. Sandra had taken an interest in Bill when he first started to come over and see there mother, often asking him about his job and his interests. As much as she had missed her biological father, she needed another father figure in her life and Bill made her mother happy. When he started to hang around more, Sandra took it upon herself to learn a bit baseball, since that was his main passion. He had so much memorabilia at his house and he had no problem teaching her all about it. Sandy figured that he was thrilled to have his lover's children interested in him. It helped him transition into the family better. Of course, he still struggled with Scotty. To be honest, they struggled with each other. They were both, oddly, awkward with each other.

Bill left shortly after Scotty, going to grab more boxes. Sandra went back to pulling things from the box. This particular one wasn't that impressive. Lots of knick knacks and books. Towards the bottom of the box was a small radio that Sandy pulled out. She walked over to her dresser, that was the only other piece of furniture besides the bed and vanity. She plugged it into the wall and turned the knob. A bit of static filled the air, before she found a clear station. "Runaround Sue" by Dion and the Belmonts filled the air, causing her to dance a little. Dion DiMucci was a heartthrob and Sandra had posters of him hung in her old bedroom. She was on the fence on whether she would put them back up or if she would try to make her room look more sophisticated.

Hours later, her room was complete, including a single poster of her celebrity crush. Who was she kidding? She couldn't leave him in a cardboard box in her closet. Dion DiMucci deserved better. Her radio was still playing, when Scotty walked in. Sandy was, currently, swaying back and forth to "Blue Moon" by the Marcels. Scotty raised his brow at his older sister, before clearing his throat.

Sandy jumped as she turned around. She let out a huff. "Jesus, Scotty, at least knock first."

"I did, you didn't hear me." He said.

Sandy folded her arms over her chest, raising a brow at him. "Okay, what do you need?"

"Mom wanted me to get you for dinner."

"Oh! It's dinner, already? Sheesh, I didn't realize how long it was taking to get this place just right." She walked out into the hall with her brother, following him towards the dining room.

"How is your room coming along?"

Scotty sighed. He had a lot of things strewn about, looking for a home.

"Uh... Good." He finally said.

"Your rebuilding that erektor set, aren't you?" She said with a smirk.

Scotty bowed his head slightly and nodded.

"Its okay. I can help you after dinner."

"Nah, I can do it. Its just taking longer than I thought."

They entered the dining room and sat down at the table. Bill was already there, looking over some papers. Their mother was still futzing around in the kitchen. Sandy went to stand back up when Scotty grabbed her arm. His eyes pleaded with her not to leave him with Bill. She sighed, as she, gently, pulled her arm away. She walked into the kitchen to help her mom with the food.

"Oh, hi, honey." She said, with a smile.

"Did you need help?"

"Yeah, just grab those plates. Be careful, they might be hot." Sandy picked them both up with oven mitts and carried them into the dining room. Her mother was right behind her and once the food was on the table, they sat down to eat.

Dinner was normal, nothing exciting happened. Most of the conversation was about Scotty and Sandy starting school in a few days. Sandy had pushed her food around her plate, not feeling particularly hungry and mentioned that she couldn't understand why they were starting school at the end of the year.

"There's two week before school is out. We could have just waited." She had said.

Her mother had given her a stern look, not wanting to discuss the issue. As she saw it, it would give them some friends over the summer and introduce them to the school system. School was important, there was no way that she was having them miss two weeks.

Bill had, politely, asked Sandy to drop it and she did. Bill may have her step father, but she looked at him as if he was her biological father. Whatever he said was law.

Scotty had kept quiet, as he always was at dinner. Anytime that Bill had a business trip, he became more vocal. Sandy always wondered when he was warm up to the man.

After dinner, Sandy had helped her mother with the dishes before heading off to her bedroom. She stopped at Scotty door, which was ajar and peeked in. His back was towards the door and he was busy rebuilding his erektor set. Sandra walked to her room and sighed. She hoped this summer he would branch out and make some friends. Being a loner couldn't be good for him.

Three days passed and it was time for their first day of school. As was tradition with her mother, she stood Scotty and Sandy next to each other to take a picture of their first day at their new school. Sandy fussed, hating this tradition.

"You'll thank me when your older." Her mother said. Sandra was convinced that was her mantra. She said it for just about every situation that Sandy complained about. She had even said it a few nights ago before Sandra was forced to drop the subject of starting school.

Sandy and Scotty were both scheduled to take the bus. Their mother was a homemaker but she did her shopping during the day. It was just easier to aend the kids on the bus. The siblings shared a bus stop, standing at the corner of their street and waiting.

Scotty had seen the boy he waved to the day before walking over. He had to be the same age as Sandy and probably in the same class. He stood by the fence, pressing his back to it, as he gave Scotty a weak smile.

Sandy raised a brow, as she looked at her brother. "What are you staring at?"

"Nothing. Just a kid I saw yesterday."

Sandy turned towards the boy in question and her cheeks flashed red when she saw him already looking at her. Quickly, she turned back around and waited for the bus. Her emerald eyes glanced back at Scotty and she lowered her voice.

"Well, don't stare... It's rude."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from The Sandlot. I only own Sandra/Sandy Smalls and any other characters that were not in the original script/movie.

The next few days went by in somewhat of a blur. The Smalls' family had just finished resetting their lives and moving across the country. School was starting, at least for the siblings. Truth was, school was ending in a couple weeks and Scotty and Sandra were just going dor formalities. Their mother didn't want them to miss out on any school, mainly because she didn't want them to be loners all summer. She wasn't as worried about Sandy, as she was about Scotty. To be honest, Sandy didn't blame her. She knew how he brother was.

"All right," Sandy said, looking at herself in the mirror. She made sure her hair didn't look like a total mess or that her outfit didnt look terrible. She couldn't lie to herself, she was nervous. "Let's get this over with."

Her mother had gone through the motions of taking their "first day of school" photos. The siblings, now, stood at the bus stop. Sandra had just scolded her brother on staring at some neighbor boy. Now, she was standing awkwardly at the bus stop, her dress swaying gently in the summer breeze. She held her leather pack by its short handle and looked forward. She could feel eyes on her, and it felt like more than one. She could almost guarantee that everyone there was looking at them. They were new, new kids were always stared at like they're some kind of side show attraction.

Sandy looked over her shoulder again, and noticed that all the boys the one guy was standing with, were now all staring at them. She wanted to run back home and just wait until summer vacation hit but she knew that wasn't an option.

Scotty turned to give the group of boys a quick glance before turning back ahead. He didnt say anything, just looked straight ahead. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his sister looking in the same direction. He could tell she was tense.

Before he could turn to talk to her, their bus arrived. Scotty was a grade below his sister and wonder if those boys shared her class or if they were in his. He doubted that they were any younger.

Stepping onto the bus, the siblings walked down the narrow aisle to the first empty seat and sat down. There was a girl in front of them, who promptly turned around and smiled at the two. She snaked her hand over the seat.

"Hey there! I'm Marcia!" She said, in a cheerful tone.

Sandy raised a brow, taking her hand and giving it a quick shake. She wasn't expecting anyone to talk to them, especially after being on the bus for less than ten seconds.

"You must be the new students," she started. She focused on Sandy. "You must be the one going into my class. My teacher was telling us about a new student coming in."

Great. The class was already forewarned, which means they already had time to prepare questions for her. From what Sandy remembered about having a new student come to your class, they usually had to introduce themselves and answer any questions that the students had.

Sandra remembered a kid that came to her class last year, when they still lived in Massachusetts. He was a foreign student, that had just moved to the US from Germany. One kid in the class took it upon himself to ask if the new student was a nazi. Sandy let out a sigh, dreading what kind of stupid questions would be asked. Or questions she just didn't want to answer.

Sandy and the girl talked a little on the ride to school, while Scotty stayed quiet. When they arrived, all the kids filed off the bus. Marcia took Sandy's hand, pulling her to the office with Scotty. They got their room numbers and were sent off. Marcia took Sandy to her new class and upon entering, Sandy noticed five out of the eight boys standing at the bus stop. She blushed again, noticing that original boy was staring at her more intently than the rest of the class.

Her new teacher, a slender woman, who looked to be in her mid-forties smiled at Sandy and walked over to her. Marcia hopped off to her seat and the teacher took over. "Class, this is Sandra Smalls. She will be with us for the remainder of the school year. Please make her feel as comfortable as possible."

She leaned against her desk and nodded to Sandy. "Why don't you tell us a little about yourself?"

"Umm," Sandy looked around the room and bit her lip. She hated speaking in front of the class. "Well, you already know my name. I, uhh, moved from Massachusetts to ... here with my mother, brother and stepfather."

"Any pets?"

Sandy looked to the teacher, who she had later learned was called Mrs. Clackson. She had forgotten to tell Sandy when she first arrived, but thankfully, she had noticed it on the chalkboard.

"No, ma'am." Sandy said.

"Well, does anyone have any questions for Sandy?" Oh wonderful, now the fun was going to start.

Hands shot up in the air and Mrs. Clackson randomly picked one.

"Where in Massachusetts did you live?" It was a girl that sat close to Marcia. She wore her hair in pigtails with a bright pinn ribbon.

"I live in a small town, close to Boston. Its called Marblehead. There's a lot of ships, boats, yachts and the like over there. It's a coastal town." Sandy said. It was also a town that her parents were from.

Another student was picked. This time a boy with red, curly hair. He was rather plump. He was one of the boys at the bus stop. "Do you like the Red Sox?"

"Yeah, theyre entertaining to watch. My stepfather is really into baseball. My biological father bad other interests."

"Like what? And where is he? Are you parents divorced?" This boy didnt wait to be picked. He was another boy from the group. He was the only black boy in the group.

Sandy hesitated for a minute. She knew her teacher wouldn't know about her father, so she didn't bother looking to her for help. For a moment, she wondered what Scotty's class was asking him.

"Um...well he collected a lot of military memoribilia, especially from WWII. My grandfather was involved in it, he was in the Navy and in the south pacific when Pearl Harbor was attacked. My father always wanted to be like my grandfather."

"Thata fascinating," her teacher said with a smile.

"Yeah... my parents aren't divorced. My father joined the Army, instead of the Navy and was deployed to Korea. He committed suicide a few years after he came home. I was 8, my brother was 7."

The class fell silent and the teacher, looked just as shocked. She pushed herself off the desk and brushed her skirt off. She pointed at a seat and had Sandy sit down.

"Class, we're going to start where we left off yesterday. Someone let Sandy read with them."

She tried changing the subject super quick, but the class was still reeling from what they were just told. Sandy hadn't meant to say it, but it came out like word vomit. As she sat at her desk, she bit her bottom lip, staring down at the desk. A desk scooted over towards her, and a book slid onto half of her desk.

"You can share with me," said a boy. Sandy looked up at him and her sapphire eyes met the chocolate colored eyes of a boy with sandy brown hair. He seemed to have a few freckles and an infectious smile. Sandy blushed a little, and tried giving him a weak smile.

"My name is Andy," he started. "Nice to meet you."

"Same.." Sandy said, then shook her head and narrowed her eyes. "I mean, my name is Sandy and it's nice to meet you too. Not same like my name is always Andy."

She realized she was nervous rambling and instantly shut her mouth. Andy let out a laugh and flipped open to the oage the teacher had asked them to be on.

"Its okay, I know what you meant." Sandy smiled at him and looked down at thr book, trying to forget that she was a complete idiot and in front of a cute boy too.

The next few hours of school seemed to fly by. At lunch, Sandy was invited to sit with Marcia and a few of her friends. She had seen Scotty sitting by himself at the end of one table. She gathered him up and made sure it was okay for him to sit with her and her new friends. Of course, they didn't mind but Sandy did. She didn't want her brother to isolate himself but she knew he wouldn't take the initiative to speak to anyone.

After school, just as they were about to get off the bus, Marcia grabbed Sandy's arm, causing a small traffic jam behind her. She looked behind Sandy and gave the boy behind her a soft smile.

"Sorry Benny," she said, "just a minute."

"It's okay." Sandy heard him say. She turned to look at him and recognized him from her class, and one of the boys from the group.

Marcia got Sandy's attention back and frowned. "Im sorry about your dad...If you need to talk, just call."

She slipped Sandy her number and hopped up to give ehr a quick hug. Normally, Sandy would have pushed back, not really being the hugging type but she didn't mind. Marcia was super sweet and had jumped right into being her friend. Sandy needed friends, and why not Marcia?

She got off the bus and met up witb Scotty before walking the short distance to their house. She turned one last time before heading inside to meet the eyes of Benny, for what felt like the hundredth time today. Bkushing, yet again, she stepped inside the house and closed the door. This being the new kid shtick was getting old really quick. It seemed like everyone wanted to stare at her.

Their mother met them in the living room with a cheshire grin.

"How was school?" She mused.

Both Sandy and Scotty sighed, but it was Sandy who spoke. "It was... something, that's for sure."


End file.
